Cocktail-???

[solidspine]

Does anyone know what the ingredients are to the “cocktail” drug that HIV patients are given?

Thanks

 

[Vasqulardad]

"COCKTAIL" refers to taking multiple drugs i.e. antivirals, that work in combination with each other. The best known antivirals are called "nucleoside analogues" and there are also non-nucleosides and protease inhibitors. The combination of these is a "cocktail."

 

[usersatch]

Just to add on to what Vascular stated. The protease in hibitors block the action of cellular and viral proteases that aid in asembly of the viroid. Non-nucleoside inhibtors, encompass a broad spectrum, but normally inhibit dimer formation of reverse transcriptase or thymidine kinase inhibition like ratonovir and acyclovir. Nucleoside inhibitors, aka chain terminators like AZT, stop DNA synthesis (and hence proviral integration into the genome).

The three are very effective when used together. However resistance, especially to the protease inhibitors, is being more of a problem.

Huge strides are being made in the non-nucleoside portion, but the others have kind of jit a dead end. The future of treatments will be with synthetic peptides and antibodies that interfere with the viral life cycle.

 

[jayb282]

The other replies are corrent. There is no single 'cocktail' - it's usually a combination of 3 or more drugs all given in combination (ocassionally it's only 2, but 3 or more is more the rule).

>>The future of treatments will be with synthetic peptides

Can't say i agree with you on that one. These molecules are HUGE and are very difficult to manufacture. The lab producing T-20 only has the capability to produce enough for a couple of thousand patients per year. As well, since it's a peptide your digestive system destroys it - so it must be injected twice a day. It is an option for people who have exhausted other avenues, but it is really a last resort treatment......

j

 

[usersatch]

Um, the peptides in question are approximately 14-30 amino acids long. That is not very big. Just big enough to block RT dimerization. I don't think many of these peptides have made it to clinical trials (I am a biochemist not a pharmacologist) because they are very new. You are right, the older peptides are big and cumbersome to synthesize, but that isn't what I am talking about. I am talking about the future of AIDS treatments (not the present).

 

[Vasqulardad]

Usersatch and jayb282, u are info gods!
Thanks for the meds update. I subscribe to the CDC electronic newletter and haven't seen that info. Where are you getting your info?

 

[usersatch]

Check out PubMed. There are a couple of groups (can't name them off the top of my head) who are working on this. I gave a journal club presentation on synthetic peptides inhibiting RT dimerization last year, so if you want, I'll go back through my notes and give you some sources.